Relentless
by MisaxMisa
Summary: Of the many things Ichigo wishes he hadn't shown Renji, this will most definately be one of them. One-shot. Light-hearted, no seriousness!


**A/N: Wouldn't you know it, inspired by a drink. I drink this stuff all of the time and a couple of days ago, this fic idea just came to me. I hope you's enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it :)  
To those of you who are reading 'Almost Perfect', sorry about the long wait between chapters. It just takes me a lot of time to write these ones so please please please bare with me!**

"Dude, what are you always drinking?" Renji asked one afternoon. He and Ichigo were sitting in the strawberries bedroom. Ichigo was browsing the web while Renji sat reading a car magazine.  
Ichigo picked up the can in question and took a gulp, glancing at the redhead as he did so. "It's relentless inferno. And I don't see why your reading that magazine, after your catastrophic driving test, am I wrong in believing you were banned from the using the test centre?"  
Renji grumbled something that sounded like a confirmation while he stared intently at the can, "It doesn't look like it's on fire. So where is this inferno?" he asked, quickly looking around the room incase he'd somehow missed a raging fire in the corner or something.  
Ichigo laughed, "That's what the drinks called, idiot. It's an energy drink."  
"How does that work? Did the soul society make it?"  
"No, it's made here."  
"By Urahara?"  
Ichigo shook his head. "By mere mortals"  
"So how does it work?" The redhead asked impatiently.  
"It's just full of caffeine which gives you a burst of energy."  
Renji frowned, "So then why are you always sitting at your computer when you drink it? Shouldn't you be doing jumping jacks or running in circles or something?"  
Ichigo chuckled, "I've developed a kind of tolerance to it."  
Renji looked at the can again, really taking in its design. Its bright orange colour and the watermark of a person behind its ornate logo.  
The pineapple weighed his chances. "Can I have a taste?"  
Ichigo motioned to the can before turning back to his computer to log onto facebook.  
Renji climbed off the bed and walked over. He picked up the can and made a show of sniffing the opening and shooting Ichigo a suspicious look. The strawberry seemed too willing as opposed to his normally irritable and 'fuck you' kind of attitude.  
Ichigo scowled, "Just take a damned drink before I take it off you."  
There's the Ichigo everybody knows and loves. Renji stuck his tongue out at the boy and took a long swig.  
"Well?" Ichigo asked expectantly as Renji seemed to deliberate.  
"It's...the nicest thing I've ever tasted!"  
Ichigo grinned, "Yep, I have a full blown addiction."  
"I want my own...can I have some money?"  
Ichigo scowled, "Use your own! Moocher."  
"Fine! I guess charity is lost on you, seeing as how I have barely anything left of my wages." Renji muttered darkly as he made his way to Ichigo's window.  
"It isn't my fault that you spend so much money on those stupid sunglasses."  
"Those sunglasses are cool. And I'm not a moocher!" These were the last things he said before he departed through the window, despite the fact that he was in a gigai and could clearly be seen by the neighbors. Ichigo shook his head and went back to his computer.

****

Over the next few months, Renji's visits to the world of the living were frequent but short. He even made several trips on single days going backwards and forwards.  
Ichigo had asked Rukia about it but even she had no clue why Renji was behaving in such a way.  
"He has been pretty on edge recently though." She said one day, "And very, very talkative. One day he was talking to Hisagi, but it was more of a one sided conversation. Shuhei barely got a word in sideways through Renji's babbling."  
"Renji talks a lot anyway though," Ichigo had said.  
"Not like this, trust me. He's training an awful lot too."  
Ichigo shrugged it off. It was common knowledge that Renji wanted to surpass his captain, Byakuya.

****

Ichigo was walking to school one morning with Keigo and Mizuiro when he got to witness Renji's behavior for himself.  
He turned a corner and nearly walked straight into the redhead who was clearly in a rush.  
"Hey pineapple. What are you doing here?" He asked.  
"Oh, nothing in particular, just enjoying the air down here. It's different to the soul society you know, more dirty, but nice all the same."  
Ichigo gave him a weird look and really took in his appearance. The soul reaper was bouncing on the spot slightly and his eyes had the hint of dark circles under them.  
"Hey, Are you feeling okay?" he asked.  
"Perfectly fine! Dandy! Chipper! Top notch! Anyway, gotta run, bye!" And with that he was gone, leaving three very confused boys in his wake.

****

Ichigo stepped out of the Senkai Gate and greeted the watchmen with his trademark scowl. He didn't like being called to the soul society on short notice, especially because it was a Saturday, but Byakuya has asked him to come immediately. He assumed that it must be for a good reason since Rukia's brother didn't exactly revel in his company and the fact that it called for immediate attendance gave him the impression it was urgent.  
He made his way to the sixth division, trying to think of possible reasons for his summons. Some hollows were planning an attack maybe? Or perhaps Rukia was going to be executed again? The later seemed somewhat less probable, seeing as how she'd been with Orihime when he'd left the World of the Living. He was greeted by the Kuchiki clan leader at the entrance to his division.  
"How did you know I was already here?" Ichigo asked, cocking his head.  
"Because your massive lack of control over your spiritual pressure means that everybody knows you're here the second you step out of the gate. It's aggravating."  
Ichigo sweat-dropped and mumbled an apology as he followed Byakuya through the large gates that adorned the barracks outer wall.  
"Renji hasn't been sleeping properly lately. His work is of an abominable standard for this division and he is extremely restless and edgy."  
Ichigo nearly laughed at Byakuya using words such as 'edgy' but felt that holding it in would be the best bet at present. He simply answered with a questioning "Okay?" as he was unsure of what this had to do with him.  
"This morning, I stumbled upon something that may explain why."  
Ichigo raised an eyebrow as they stopped in front of a door that held a sign saying 'storage'.

"So this is the urgent reason you called me up here for?"  
"Well I had a feeling that this has something to do with you." The noble answered as he pushed the door open.  
Ichigo peered inside. Of all the things you could find in a storage cupboard, he had not expected this. His jaw dropped as he took in the massive amount of cans that were scattered haphazardly on the floor and stacked upon the shelves, anything that had been in this cupboard previously had clearly been removed. Upon closer inspection, Ichigo identified that the cans were an assorted range of Relentless energy drinks, mostly Inferno with the Juiced range and Origin cans amongst them. He groaned loudly as Byakuya looked at him sternly.  
"I want them removed and Renji weaned off of them. Consider it a new duty." He said, before he took his leave. Ichigo shook his head and picked up a can. He cracked the seal and took a swig, still astounded by the sheer amount that was there. At least this explained Renji's weird travel habits and behavior.  
He settled down on the floor, not quite ready to start on his newly appointed 'duty'.  
"And I thought I had an addiction..."

**A/N: for those of you who didn't realize or haven't read it, the stuff about Renji driving near the beginning is in reference to my other one-shot 'Learning To Drive'. Check it out if you haven't already :)**


End file.
